New Jersey § 40a:11-4

§ 40a:11-4.

Competitive contracting proposals shall be solicited in the following manner: a. A notice of the availability of request for proposal documentation shall be published

in an official newspaper of the contracting unit at least 20 days prior to the date

established for the submission of proposals. The contracting unit shall promptly reply to any request by an interested vendor

by providing a copy of the request for proposals. The contracting unit may charge a fee for the proposal documentation that shall

not exceed $50.00 or the cost of reproducing the documentation, whichever is greater. b. Each interested vendor shall submit a proposal which shall include all the information

required by the request for proposals. Failure to meet the requirements of the request for proposals may result in the

contracting unit disqualifying the vendor from further consideration. Under no circumstances shall the provisions of a proposal be subject to negotiation

by the contracting unit. c. If the contracting unit, at the time of solicitation, utilizes its own employees

to provide the goods or perform the services, or both, considered for competitive

contracting, the governing body shall, at any time prior to, but no later than the

time of solicitation for competitive contracting proposals, notify affected employees

of the governing body's intention to solicit competitive contracting proposals. Employees or their representatives shall be permitted to submit recommendations

and proposals affecting wages, hours, and terms and conditions of employment in such

a manner as to meet the goals of the competitive contract. If employees are represented by an organization that has negotiated a contract with

the contracting unit, only the bargaining unit shall be authorized to submit such

recommendations or proposals. When requested by such employees, the governing body shall provide such information

regarding budgets and the costs of performing the services by such employees as may

be available. Nothing shall prevent such employees from making recommendations that may include

modifications to existing labor agreements in order to reduce such costs in lieu of

award of a competitive contract, and agreements implementing such recommendations

may be considered as cause for rejecting all other proposals. d. The purchasing agent or counsel or administrator shall evaluate all proposals only

in accordance with the methodology described in the request for proposals. After proposals have been evaluated, the purchasing agent or counsel or administrator

shall prepare a report evaluating and recommending the award of a contract or contracts. The report shall list the names of all potential vendors who submitted a proposal

and shall summarize the proposals of each vendor. The report shall rank vendors in order of evaluation, shall recommend the selection

of a vendor or vendors, as appropriate, for a contract, shall be clear in the reasons

why the vendor or vendors have been selected among others considered, and shall detail

the terms, conditions, scope of services, fees, and other matters to be incorporated

into a contract. The report shall be made available to the public at least 48 hours prior to the

awarding of the contract, or when made available to the governing body, whichever

is sooner. The governing body shall have the right to reject all proposals for any of the reasons

set forth in section 21 of P.L.1999, c. 440 ( C.40A:11-13.2 ). e. Award of a contract shall be made by resolution of the governing body of the contracting

unit within 60 days of the receipt of the proposals, except that the proposals of

any vendors who consent thereto, may, at the request of the contracting unit, be held

for consideration for such longer period as may be agreed. f. The report prepared pursuant to subsection d. of this section shall become part

of the public record and shall reflect the final action of the governing body. Contracts shall be executed pursuant to section 14 of P.L.1971, c. 198 ( C.40A:11-14 ). g. The clerk or secretary of the contracting unit shall publish a notice in the official

newspaper of the contracting unit summarizing the award of a contract, which shall

include but not be limited to, the nature, duration, and amount of the contract, the

name of the vendor and a statement that the resolution and contract are on file and

available for public inspection in the office of the clerk or secretary of the municipality,

county, local public authority or special district of the governing body. h. All contract awards shall be subject to rules concerning certification of availability

of funds adopted pursuant to section 3 of P.L.1971, c. 198 ( C.40A:11-3 ) and section 15 of P.L.1971, c. 198 ( C.40A:11-15 ). i. The director, after consultation with the Commissioner of Education, may adopt

additional rules and regulations, in accordance with the “Administrative Procedure

Act,” P.L.1968, c. 410 ( C.52:14B-1 et seq. ), as may be necessary to effectuate the provisions of sections 1 through 5 of P.L.1999, c. 440 ( C.40A:11-4.1 through C.40A:11-4.5 ).